MONDAY PM: Paramount is announcing bigger actual numbers. “More theatres ran midnight shows than we had originally forecast. And a number of Imax locations that aren’t in multiplexes and are not in the reporting system did huge grosses,” an exec explains. So Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen opened to a 3-day weekend total is $108.9M and 5-day overall is $200Mfrom 4,234 theaters. The breakdown is $32M for Sunday, $40.2M for Saturday, $36.7M Friday, $29M Thursday, and a record smashing $62M Wednesday. Included are 169 IMAX screens which contributed a giant $14.5M to the 5 day total. Internationally, the robot sequel made $166.1M with a cume of $190.3M including the early debuts in Japan and the UK. So that makes for $390.4M worldwide, a nice haul for the 100%-owned Viacom title. (There have been some erroneous reports that Steven Spielberg has a piece of the new pic, but I’m told he has no personal financial interest in it. He received an executive producer credit and commensurate fee, but the movie falls under the original acquisition deal when Paramount acquired DreamWorks SKG.) What’s amazing is that Transformers 2 even came as close as it did — No. 2 — to challenging the biggest ever 5-day opening record of $203.8M set by Warner Bros’ 2008 The Dark Knight since Christopher Nolan’s film received great reviews, and the critics hated Michael Bay’s popcorn pic. But TF2 proved the definition of a summer movie: loud, mindless, and therefore controversial as a blockbuster. Still, Warner Bros closely watched the DK vs TF2 contest: of all the studios, WB gave the Paramount pic the lowest 5-day numbers.

In terms of records, Transformers 2’s Wednesday midnights broke the previous post-midnight Wednesday record set by 2007’s Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix: $16M vs $12M. It also smashed the Wednesday opening record set by that Harry Potter 5: $62M vs $44.2M. (DK opened on a Friday.) And TF2 shattered the biggest Wednesday 5-day opener of all time set by 2004’s Spider-Man 2: $200M vs $152.4M. And it came in 2nd to Dark Knight for biggest opening day ever: $62M vs $67.1M, and for biggest ever 5-day opening: $200M vs $203.8M.

SATURDAY PM: Sources tell me Paramount’s Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallenis looking like it took in $39.5 Saturday and $36.7M Friday from 4,234 theaters. The studio is now estimating its 3-day weekend cume is bigger than expected: $115M vs $90M previously anticipated despite lousy reviews. But execs say the robot sequel will “only” get to $200M for the 5-day opening total. Which means the rock’em, sock’em pic isn’t expected to gun down the 5-day opening record of $203.8M set by last summer’s The Dark Knight.

THURSDAY 10:30 PM: Sources tell me that Paramount’s Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen logged a $28.6M Thursday. That’s $3M more than the studio expected. The pic has now made $89.3M in two days from 4,234 North American theaters, including 169 Imax locations which earned $2.3M Thursday and $1M Wednesday. Now the robot sequel is on its way to a $185+M five-day total. To beat the record, it would have to equal The Dark Knight‘s $203.8M. (Impossible?) But Transformers 2 is certain to post the 2nd best ever 5-day domestic total. Internationally, the pic has made just over $80M through Thursday after opening day and date in almost every territory.

THURSDAY AM UPDATE: It’s now officially a rock-’em, sock-’em summer! Paramount’s Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen shattered the Wednesday opening record set by Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix (#5) in 2007: $60.6M vs $44.2M. Even better for the studio, Transformers 2 came in 2nd only to 2008 box office phenomenon The Dark Knight for biggest opening day ever: $60.6M vs $67.1M. So now 2007 Spider-Man 3‘s $59.8M single day take drops down to #3. The robot sequel grosses from 4,234 North American theaters are $16M more than Paramount expected. That puts the sci-fi actioner on track for a $175M five-day opening despite overwhelmingly lousy reviews. But Paramount boasted how exit polling showed that 91% of the audience said “they liked this movie as much or better than the first”. So this Decepticons vs Autobots battle is reviewer-proof.

WEDNESDAY AM: Let’s be clear: Transformers 2: Revenge Of The Fallen did not break the overall post-midnight preview record of $18.4 million (from 3,040 theaters) set by The Dark Knight on a Friday last summer, but is now 3rd of all time behind Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith‘s $16.9M (in 2,915 plays in 2005). But the Paramount sequel playing 12:01 AM shows in 3,000+ venues sure came closer than anyone thought possible. Rival studios had expected only between $10M-$12M in midnight shows. So the $16M for Transformers 2 smashed that and more. It broke the previous post-midnight Wednesday record of $12M set by the most recent Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix in 2007. Naturally, Paramount has a sure-shot to shatter that pic’s $44M Wednesday record opening as well as the biggest Wednesday 5-day opener of all time Spider-Man 2‘s grosses of $152.4M in 2004. The studio’s estimated 5-day breakdown for Transformers 2 as it expands into a huge release of 4,226 runs now stands at $45M for Wednesday, $25M for Thursday, and $90M for Friday-Sunday. That’s in line with Paramount’s estimate of $160M which I reported a month ago. But rival studios are pegging the 5-day estimated total at $165M-$175M. “Reviews have been venomous, and I get that it’s review proof. But it won’t be the zeitgeist movie that last summer’s Dark Knight was,” one competitor told me. “It’s a big-ass opening movie that will fall precipitously.” (*These numbers aren’t adjusted for inflation or ticket prices.)

198 Comments

Phillip • on Jun 24, 2009 1:37 pm

‘Coming closer than people thought’ is not ‘record smashing.’

todd • on Jun 24, 2009 1:56 pm

TRANSFORMERS RISE OF THE FALLEN WAS EVERYTHING YOU COULD EVER WANT FROM A SUMMER ACTION FLICK IT HAD NON STOP ACTION AND AMAZING SPECIAL EFFECTS! CRITICS ARE JUST WORRIED THAT THIS COULD BE THE FILM THAT COULD COME CLOSE TO THE DARK OVERATED KNIGHT SO THEY HAVE TO GIVE IT TERRIBLE REVIEWS! $400M DOMESTIC IS IN THE BAG FOR THIS SEQUEL!!!!

esme • on Jun 24, 2009 2:32 pm

just looking for a quiet spot to say CONGRATS!!

I saw It • on Jun 24, 2009 2:33 pm

Critics are so out of touch. This is a big fun movie. Heaven forbid people have a good time in a movie theater. I’m going again on Friday.

Shed • on Jun 24, 2009 2:36 pm

I like my robots racist, so I’ll check this out tomorrow.

Jon • on Jun 24, 2009 2:38 pm

The Dark Knight was not overrated it was underrated. Had it won the Best Picture Oscar it would have been overrated. And since it wasn’t even nominated, it makes it underrated. The Dark Knight combines the action extravaganza you expect from a summer movie with the dramatically powerful performances and interpretations of the characters. It gives you a compelling story. And it’s really one of the best pieces of American cinema this decade. And the reason the reviews are terrible is because it is terrible. The story is weak, the characters are stupid and the interactions between the humans is nothing. Now, is Transformers 2 good from the summer action movie standpoint? Yes. But is it a piece of art that will transcend time and be like Casablanca? No, it won’t. And that’s what gets critics mad. It’s that films don’t try to be anything anymore except big money makers.

trey • on Jun 24, 2009 2:45 pm

Didn’t like the twin Jar Jar bots, but otherwise it was a fun movie. Though it felt like Bay had an invisible middle finger in the frame for the last 45 mins.

Not coming CLOSE to TDK !! LMFAO!!

Rebobo • on Jun 24, 2009 3:26 pm

Transformers will be the # 1 film for this year. It is an awesome crowd pleaser. Stop quoting Jeff Blake!

anon • on Jun 24, 2009 3:26 pm

Can’t wait to see it

A. M. • on Jun 24, 2009 3:26 pm

Is this the botanical garden or sth?
It’s not only “the critics” who diss T2, word of mouth is going south with the speed of light as well. IOW: The more people have seen it, the worse WOM gets.

I was bored out of my skull while I watched T2 today. Had trouble staying awake. Not kidding. Extremely unsatisfying experience. I’d cut at least 40 minutes.

Transformers 2 didn’t feel like a movie. Rather like a collage of different parts, some of them very weak, that didn’t work together all that well. If only the filmmakers had cared as much about the human characters and actors as they did about the explosions and fights….

What did Nikki write recently? Something like “Shia should be/will be in every movie?” Try again. When college hottie hit on him, all I could thinks was: she hits on this guy? Why on earth would she, I don’t get it.

I liked Shia so much better in Indiana Jones and Disturbia.

Michael Bay needs a directing partner who directs the humans. Seriously. What he did here is embarrassing.

Ricky Coogan • on Jun 24, 2009 3:27 pm

“Transformers 2” is a surprising in-depth look into the mind of Michel Bay. Not surprisingly it’s a very scary place.

Schwartzy • on Jun 24, 2009 3:44 pm

Hey douchebag… err… “todd” – don’t tell me what I want from a summer action flick. Your simple reptilian mind might not be able to process more than “non stop action and amazing special effects”, but other moviegoers—people who might have a more refined taste and hold their films to a higher standard—want STORY and CHARACTER and EMOTION and editing that won’t elicit an epileptic seizure and dialogue that wasn’t written through a speak-n-spell and female characters that are more than just window-dressing (note to Bay: hot chicks are even hotter if you give them a personality and a character arc) and how about a moment of quiet… one quiet scene PLEASE. It’s called tension. You can’t build said tension if everything is always turned up to 11. The reason I know that more can/should be expected of a summer movie is because of two very recent examples of combining popcorn thrills with interesting/complex characters (that we want to watch more than the FX) and compelling stories: TDK (obviously) and Iron Man. ’nuff said.
Ugh. Why am I wasting my time on Todd… have fun. Go see the movie 10 times. That’s what we need – Michael Bay encouraged to make more of the same.
Anyone want to see The Hurt Locker with me this weekend?

Adam Hudson • on Jun 24, 2009 3:45 pm

great movie imo and the dark knight is so overrated the critics are idiots this movie so fun love ever min of it

n • on Jun 24, 2009 3:54 pm

Weirdly, someone identifying himself as Bob Orci posted the following on Harry Knowles’ Ain’t It Cool News:

“thanks for trying to give me and Alex a pass, but the sequence of events isn’t exactly right. Two weeks before the strike, Alex and Ehren and I generated a 20 page story outline together, and then Michael used it during the strike to prep the action and to develop some of the things he wanted into more of a 60 page scriptment. The twins were born then. I wouldn’t blame Ehren for anything that you wouldn’t blame us for, but thanks anyway.”

In other words, pointing the finger of blame straight at Bay for the racist stereotypes (among other things) in Transformers. Of course, it’s not possible to verify this poster’s identity, and the level of decorum displayed seems inappropriate for someone in Orci’s position.

B Hennessay! • on Jun 24, 2009 4:05 pm

Captain Kirk says “Bring It, we’re the fanboy film of the summer yo.”

johnny Marshall • on Jun 24, 2009 4:06 pm

@”I Saw It”

Its not just “The Critics” (who, in this multi-media, blog-driven world are all but irrelevant to a movie’s performance), its the word of mouth (which, in this multi-media, blog-driven world is vital to a movie’s performance). Given just how awful people are saying this movie is, there’s no way it sees the upper-end rival predictions. When even the perennially juvenile Harry “I’ve never met a film I didn’t like as long as I got an all expenses-paid set visit” Knowles hates it, its got to be bad.

Alboone • on Jun 24, 2009 5:13 pm

My God this thing they call a movie was truly a painful experience to go through. Terrible beyond belief. It defines a new low in blockbuster filmmaking, or if you could even call it that. If someone knows the Email address to the producers involved please post because they really need to know their product is the very definition of garbage.

Justin • on Jun 24, 2009 5:25 pm

You guys are crazy I’m a general manager for a local small town theatre in south Florida and I have yet to hear anyone say anything bad about this movie. We have sold out shows all day long and nobody is complaining the only people I hear trash the movie are the people all over the internet and the critics. This is a 400 million+ movie.

Just left the theater. I thought it was a fine summer flick. Enjoyed it very much.

Lighten up.

Marc • on Jun 24, 2009 6:36 pm

(LOL) It’s so obvious that the only people criticizing this movie are people desperate for it to do bad for whatever personal gripe they have with either the studio, the director, or some other association with the film. The real truth is it is funny, thrilling, exciting, and edge of your seat entertainment at in its most exhilerating form. I know it’s hard to hear and there’s a need to just write as snarky and as nasty of a comment as you can think of in hopes of feeling better about yourselves. But, the reality is it’s a wonderfully entertaining movie. And true word of mouth is spoken by the people exiting the theaters and talking to the neighbors, friends, and co-workers, not internet rants. Please, I saw happy, smiley people exiting the theater this morning and every single comment within earshot was positive. How about that? Bash away if you must. That’s not fooling anyone (LOL). It’s a great film with huge box office appeal. And it’s going to generate alot of positive buzz from ordinary people who saw it and will rave about it to their family and friends today and throughout the week.

PM • on Jun 24, 2009 7:24 pm

A.M. did you watch the movie? oh yeah you did. the hot lady is a robot and they are tracking Shia that’s why she’s after Shia. Watch the movie again so you could understand.
“Try again. When college hottie hit on him, all I could thinks was: she hits on this guy? Why on earth would she, I don’t get it.”

Dan • on Jun 24, 2009 9:13 pm

A film where lots of stuff blows up and every single woman is objectified as a package of sex waiting to be unwrapped? $400 mil easily.

The first Transformers let you check your brain at the concession counter and enjoy a mindless, yet somewhat entertaining, film. This one just straight up eats the brain right out of your head while your eyes feast on Megan Fox’s boobs and ass in between explosions. It’s disgusting that parents are taking their kids to see this bile.